The perfect side dish to round out any of your holiday meals, this Classic Stuffing is super easy, flavorful, and a great addition to your dinner table.
I’m a stuffing girl, always have been, and always will be. This Classic Stuffing is one of my favorites, no frills, just flavor, it is a recipe that you will fall in love with.
I know that some people will go all out with their side dishes, but sometimes I like to keep it simple, and some of the most simple recipes in my experience, are the best.
This Classic Stuffing is one way we have been making stuffing for many many years. With easy-to-find ingredients, you really cannot go wrong here.
It’s also great to build off of if you want a more filling or different flavored recipe, a great base, so to say – you always need one of those!
This Classic Stuffing Recipe graces our holiday tables every Thanksgiving and Christmas, you better know that we make it for both, we just can’t get enough.
I could eat stuffing all year round, and we do. It is just one of those recipes that is hearty and goes great with a variety of different dishes.
If you are looking to go a little easier this year but not lack on that flavor, you have to make this Classic Stuffing – it will become a staple.
Some of my other favorite side dish recipes that we have on our site include: Savory Mashed Sweet Potatoes, Dinner Rolls and Classic Baked Macaroni and Cheese.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
- Easily available ingredients helps this come together quickly.
- A great base recipe to work off of.
- Makes a large batch, great for a crowd.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED (FULL RECIPE BELOW):
White bread cubes
Unsalted butter
Celery
Onion
Garlic
Dried parsley flakes
Kosher salt
Ground sage
Pepper
Dried thyme
Poultry seasoning
Dried rosemary
Eggs
Unsalted chicken stock
Fresh chopped parsley for garnish
HOW TO MAKE CLASSIC STUFFING:
- Let the bread cubes sit out overnight if you have time. If not, bake them in a single layer on sheet trays at 200°F for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray an 11×7 baking dish with cooking spray, set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the 1 cup of the butter. Add the celery and onion, and cook, until softened and the onion is translucent, occasionally stirring for 10 minutes.
- Add the garlic, parsley, salt, sage, pepper, thyme, poultry seasoning, and rosemary. Mix it in and cook for 1 minute, take off the heat.
- Mix the eggs and 2 cups of stock together well in a bowl.
- Add the bread cubes and vegetable mixture to a large bowl, and stir to combine.
- Add the egg and stock mixture, stir to combine. Let it sit for 10 minutes so the bread can absorb the liquid. It should be very moist but not wet, if it seems too dry to you, add another cup of stock.
- Pour the stuffing into the prepared baking dish. Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter and drizzle it on top.
- Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes until golden brown and crispy on top. Place a sheet tray under the baking dish to catch any drips.
- Let cool for 10 minutes and serve with fresh chopped parsley for optional garnish.
WHAT IS THE BEST PAN SIZE TO USE?
For this recipe we used an 11×7-inch pan, this makes a thicker stuffing, but if you do not have that pan, you can also use a 9×13-inch pan.
This will make it a little thinner, but if that doesn’t matter to you, then the pan will work great!
CAN I USE FRESH HERBS?
Absolutely, if you would rather use fresh rather than dried, you can do that. You will just double the amount of the fresh compared to what is listed for the dried.
WHAT ELSE CAN I ADD TO THIS RECIPE?
If you are looking to switch the flavors up or make it a little more heartier some other things you can add include:
- Italian seasoning
- Herbs de Provence
- Tarragon
- Marjoram
- Sausage
If you choose to use sausage in this recipe, use one pound of your favorite sausage and brown in a skillet with your vegetables with 3/4 cup of butter instead of 1 cup.
Then follow the recipe the same as listed. This would be best to use a 9×13-inch baking pan since you are adding more to the recipe, and it will fit better.
HOW TO STORE:
You can store this in an airtight container in the refrigerator, where it will keep for up to 5 days.
This can also be frozen, place in a freezer container and it will keep for up to 3 months.
To defrost, remove from the freezer to the refrigerator or countertop until thawed. To reheat, you can cover it with foil and place it in the oven until heated through, or you can also microwave this.
TIPS AND TRICKS:
- Other herbs and additions can be added, see above for suggestions.
- We use regular white bread for this recipe, we have not tested with another bread.
- This can be made in either an 11×7 or 9×13-inch baking dish.
- Fresh herbs can be used instead of dried, see how to do that above.
- This can be frozen, see above on how to freeze.
- If you like your stuffing on the dryer side, use 2 cups of stock instead of 3.
Looking for that staple recipe that is great for your holiday spread? This Classic Stuffing is easy, full of flavor, and the perfect go-to side dish recipe.
If you like this recipe you might also like:
If you’ve tried this CLASSIC STUFFING or any other recipe on my site, let me know in the comment section how it turned out, we love hearing from our readers! You can also follow along with me on PINTEREST, FACEBOOK and INSTAGRAM to see more amazing recipes and what shenanigans I’m getting into!
Classic Stuffing
Ingredients
- 12 cups white bread cubes 1/2 inch diced
- 1 cup + 4 tablespoons unsalted butter divided
- 1 ½ cups chopped celery
- 1 ½ cups chopped onion
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon dried parsley flakes
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons ground sage
- 1 ½ teaspoons black pepper
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- 2 large eggs well beaten
- 2-3 cups unsalted chicken stock
- Fresh chopped parsley for garnish
Instructions
- Let the bread cubes sit out overnight if you have time. If not, bake them in a single layer on sheet trays at 200°F for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Set aside.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Spray an 11x7 baking dish with cooking spray, set aside.
- In a large skillet over medium heat, melt the 1 cup of the butter. Add the celery and onion, and cook, until softened and the onion is translucent, occasionally stirring for 10 minutes.
- Add the garlic, parsley, salt, sage, pepper, thyme, poultry seasoning, and rosemary. Mix it in and cook for 1 minute, take off the heat.
- Mix the eggs and 2 cups of stock together well in a bowl.
- Add the bread cubes and vegetable mixture to a large bowl, and stir to combine.
- Add the egg and stock mixture, stir to combine. Let it sit for 10 minutes so the bread can absorb the liquid. It should be very moist but not wet, if it seems too dry to you, add another cup of stock.
- Pour the stuffing into the prepared baking dish. Melt the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter and drizzle it on top.
- Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for an additional 20-30 minutes until golden brown and crispy on top. Place a sheet tray under the baking dish to catch any drips.
- Let cool for 10 minutes and serve with fresh chopped parsley for optional garnish.
Notes
- Other herbs and additions can be added, see above for suggestions.
- We use regular white bread for this recipe, we have not tested with another bread.
- This can be made in either an 11x7 or 9x13-inch baking dish.
- Fresh herbs can be used instead of dried, see how to do that above.
- This can be frozen, see above on how to freeze.
- If you like your stuffing on the dryer side, use 2 cups of stock instead of 3.
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